Manual and automatic shifter levers for vehicles are known to be mounted on a steering column and on a center console (see U.S. Pat. No. 6,539,822, to Wilson, and incorporated herein by reference in its entirety). Shifter levers are also known to be part of an assembly that include a brake interlocking module, and an ignition key cylinder. The brake interlocking module prevents an operator from moving the shift lever out of a park position without first depressing the brake pedal (i.e. Brake Transmission Shift Interlock or BTSI). A brake interlock feature is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,945,377, to Burr and assigned to the same assignee as the present invention, and another embodiment is also disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,853,348, to Lehman. Both patents are herein incorporated by reference in their entirety.
Steering column mounted shifter assemblies are also known to have cam actuators. Such actuators have a lever that carries a cam track which cooperates with a manual shift control lever to pivot the actuating lever. The actuating lever also has an output arm to which a transmission shift cable is secured. The shift cable moves substantially linearly when the actuator lever is pivoted (see U.S. Pat. No. 4,733,573, to Kramer and incorporated herein by reference in its entirety).
Unfortunately, the shifter assemblies are custom to any one application. For instance, an assembly for a steering column application is different than an assembly for a center console mount. This contributes toward greater manufacturing costs.